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This morning I wanted to encourage the prisoners who I hadn’t been able to see for a while since VBS, and my brothers visit made me busy.

So when it came time to share I turned to Zechariah 3, and shared a simple truth….

You can come home.

The passage is a significant one since Joshua the High Priest stands before God in filthy clothes because of sin (Zechariah 3:3) and being attacked by Satan (3:1). The Lord responded by rebuking Satan (3:2), clothing Joshua in clean clothes symbolizing holiness (3:4-5) and rededicating him the Lord’s work (3:6-7).

All of us at one time or another find ourselves in Joshua’s situation. Beaten down by the Devil, and fallen into sinful habits. The joy is knowing that God takes great pleasure in restoring us when we have sinned.

But we must come home!!!

I connected the story in Zechariah to our present day by saying the Lord still wants to restore us when we have fallen. The difference is we can have that restoration at any time following repentance.

Sadly, many of us (me included) know we are clothed with filthy garments of sin but refuse to admit it. There are many reasons why, such as our stubborn pride, or unwillingness to admit we have sinned. But often it’s because we somehow doubt the love of God.

Oh we wouldn’t really say that….

but we act as if our sins were somehow to awful for God to forgive.

yet those who do repent are guaranteed redemption.

I closed my message with a story about a son who after an argument with his father left home. Years later he wanted to return but wasn’t sure if his father would forgive him. He asked his mother to tell him if the son was welcome home to tie a handkerchief in the limb of their apple tree.

As he neared their street he couldn’t bear to look so asked a friend sitting by him to switch places so that he was no longer by the window.

He felt them turning onto his road but his friend was silent

“Do you see the tree?” He asked

After a long time his friend responded “There is a handkerchief in every limb of the tree.”

Watching those men underline the words of Zechariah three I was reminded how powerful that simple message is…you can come home.

One the way out one inmate took my hand and said “Thank you brother John, those words touched my heart.”

While people need to know the deep rich truths of the Gospel, sometimes they just need to be reminded God is waiting for them to come home.